Years ago, I bumped into a good friend of mine at the swimming pool. Olivia had always been a beautiful athletic woman who had celebrated her sixtieth birthday. "Believe it or not," she confided, "I have just turned invisible". She described how men had stopped looking at her, how she felt taken for granted - a little old lady.
I was younger than she was and would never be as beautiful, but her words stuck like a dire warning. I told myself that when time would come, I should take full advantage of my newfound invisibility: be even more outrageous, creative and outspoken, eavesdrop, eat with impunity, wear what I want. I am not quite there yet but I think about this more often than in the past.
This week's theme is about the impermanence of our bodies.
The illustration started with a fabric collage of two older women. I deliberately omitted parts of their bodies that I then embroidered transparent thread. I added a background of embroidered silhouettes. I let the fabric wrinkle like skin. This project was about letting loose.
For good measure, I went rogue and painted the word "Impermanent" like a big sloppy banner - the type that you might find at a demonstration. For this, I used Ultra-dye in mandarin orange. Yes, ORANGE! Bright. Loud.
This week's story follows our two characters from last week, Ginette and Mina, who have now turned invisible. They are on a quest for meaning and adventure and these women will take the bull by the horns. Read the story here.